More than 200 Harlem Students Learn Their Financial ABCs.

HARLEM, N.Y. -- Citigroup Foundation Presents $500,000 Check to Operation HOPE to Expand Banking on Our Future Program and Reach 10,000 Inner City Youth in America

Today, Operation HOPE, Inc. (OHI), and Citigroup hosted an event to celebrate the launch of the 'Banking on Our Future'

Program at the Roberto Clemente Middle School in Harlem. At the event, John Bryant, OHI's Founder, Chairman and CEO, and Denise Durham-Williams, Citibank's National Community Relations Director, spoke to students who will be participating in the program about the importance of financial education. Denise Durham-Williams and Daria Sheehan, Vice President of the Citigroup Foundation, also presented a $500,000 grant check from the Citigroup Foundation to John Bryant to support the expansion of the program to seven cities, including New York City (Harlem), Washington, D.C., Baltimore, Chicago, Los Angeles, Oakland, and Atlanta.

"We are pleased to support Operation HOPE and the expansion of a program that empowers so many young people in underserved communities to become more knowledgeable about personal finance," said Denise Durham-Williams, National Community Relations Director, Citibank, on behalf of the Citigroup Foundation. "At Citigroup, helping to make life better in the communities we serve is the foundation of our community commitment and providing financial education to students today will help build stronger communities tomorrow."

"Citigroup and the Citigroup Foundation's on-going support of Operation HOPE's financial literacy initiatives through generous financial contributions and significant investment of their human capital is greatly appreciated and on behalf of the thousands of youth we have educated I thank its leadership for their partnership with us," said John Bryant, OHI's Founder, Chairman, and CEO.

To implement the "Banking on Our Future" Program at the Roberto Clemente Middle School, Citigroup employees, who are members of Citigroup's African Heritage Network, an employee-led group involved in a variety of activities including community outreach, networking, diversity and education, have teamed up with Operation HOPE for a four-week training program. As part of the Network's Adopt-a-School initiative, they will volunteer as HOPE Corps banker-teachers and educate more than 250 students in 12 different classes about the basics of earning income, budgeting, saving and investing.

In April 2004, with the support of a $250,000 grant from the Citigroup Foundation, Citigroup and Operation HOPE announced a national partnership to support "Banking on Our Future," in three cities. Last year, the Network taught 470 public school children in Harlem and the program reached almost 2,000 students in 30 schools in Washington, DC, Oakland, CA, and New York City (Harlem).

With widespread success in major markets across the U.S. through public/private partnerships, Operation HOPE has educated over 147,000 children at more than 500 schools and community-based organizations with its program "Banking on Our Future." Launched in 1996, 'Banking on Our Future' has brought over 2,500 volunteer banker-teachers into classrooms to teach young people practical money management skills while inspiring them to take control of their financial futures. It is the only face-to-face economic literacy program taught year round in public schools at no cost to schools. Banking on Our Future is a winner of the Oprah's Angel Network award and the U.S. Treasury Department's John Sherman Award for financial literacy excellence. The program teaches four core modules; the basics of banking; how to open and maintain a checking and savings account; the power of credit; and basic investments.

Recently, Citigroup and the Citigroup Foundation announced a 10-year, $200 million global financial education commitment, the formation of a new Office of Financial Education and a global initiative designed to encourage its 300,000 employees around the world to devote time to support financial education and other charitable causes. Under the new initiative, employees may take a day off from work to volunteer for non-profit organizations in their communities.

About Roberto Clemente Middle School

"All children will achieve through educational excellence." Roberto Clemente Middle School mission is to provide our students with the best educational opportunities in order to maximize their potential. We believe that all children will learn with effective teaching. We intend to address this through: - A diverse, yet unified educational program; - Experiences which promote discovery, inquiry and interactive teaching-learning processes; - A commitment by the I.S. 195 community that all of our children can and will learn, with our direct involvement on a daily basis."

About Citigroup

The Citigroup Financial Education Program is a global, company-wide effort to identify, support and implement initiatives that help give individuals, families and communities the tools needed to make sound financial decisions. Citigroup's 10-year, $200 million global financial education commitment is focused in three areas: Personal Financial Education, Small Business Financial Education, and Institutional Financial Education. Additional information about Citigroup's Financial Education Program, including Foundation guidelines, links and resources, including the Citigroup Financial Education Program Curriculum and Facilitator's Guide may be found at: www.citigroup.com/citigroup/financialeducation.

Citigroup (NYSE: C), the leading global financial services company, has some 200 million customer accounts and does business in more than 100 countries, providing consumers, corporations, governments and institutions with a broad range of financial products and services, including consumer banking and credit, corporate and investment banking, insurance, securities brokerage, and asset management. Major brand names under Citigroup's trademark red umbrella include Citibank, CitiFinancial, Primerica, Smith Barney, Banamex, and Travelers Life and Annuity. Additional information may be found at www.citigroup.com.

About Operation HOPE:

Operation HOPE, Inc. (OHI, is America's first nonprofit social investment bank and a national provider of financial literacy and economic empowerment programs. Through ongoing collaborations and long-term partnerships with leading government, private sector, and community interests, OHI works to bring self-sufficiency and a sustained spirit of revitalization to America's inner-city communities. OHI's HOPE Centers, a growing network of inner-city banking centers. They have created more than 800 new homeowners and small business owners, more than $125 million in funded loans, and more than $210 million in commitments for homeownership and small business loans from their 250 bank and corporate partners. For more information visit: www.operationhope.org, www.bankingonourfuture.org, and www.hopecoalitionamerica.org.